Moving into consulting as an experienced hire.

Im in a bit of a dilemma. I studied engineering and have been in the industry for 2.5 years and I've realised its not for me. Im quite entrepreneurial and i enjoy a fast paced environment. The start ups i have worked on in the past havr sparked my interest in consulting. I have 2 options:

1. Go to business school at a target school and fork our 200k to get myself an interview. It a large time and money committment

2. Transition into MC now and risk starting again as a graduate. My only reservation with this is i don't want to start over again as a 26 year old graduate.

I am aiming for MBB and need some advice as to which pathway has better odds for me? I achieved first class honours in engineering and have competed against 198 other candidates to get the design job I am currently in. I also ran a start up that was profitable and interacted a lot with C-suite execs. Given my cirumstances, I need advice on the best pathway for me and my odds of getting a position.

Going to a target business school would be the ‘traditional’ way to get an interview for an Associate position at MBB (called Associate at McKinsey and AT Kearney vs. Consultant at BCG/Bain). Nevertheless, I know some experienced hires that successfully transitioned to MBB without MBA.

The hardest part for your will likely be to get an interview. There is not a written rule and significant differences exist depending on the office and geography but in general:

McK/ATK are probably the most open, assuming you have a specific expertise set that they need

Bain pretty much does not take anyone out of school and value some experience

BCG does hire some experienced hires but that's rare

If you had worked alongside consultants on a project at your company, I would suggest that you ask them to recommend you for an interview. If that is not your case, I recommend to use any other contact or to get in touch with a headhunter rather than sendig a 'cold' application. Once you got an interview... expectations will be mainly the same. Yes, you probably have a slightly better business sense than average candidate due to longer work experience, and yes you might feel more comfortable talking to senior execs, but that will not make a significant difference in how you will be judged.

Let me also precise that experienced hires will be generally penalized on their career paths. Especially if they do not come from a strategy consulting background, in the first period they will struggle a lot more than an internal consultant of the same level who has develop a very specific mindset.

Considering your work experience, at this stage you would probably get in at a senior analyst position and then could get promoted to an associate level after 0.5/1 year.

given your profile and goals, I would recommend to apply for a position in consulting now, and leave the MBA as a backup if your applications are not successful, for the following reasons:

Although it could be slightly easier for you to get the interview after a top MBA, there are less slots for post MBA than pre MBA, thus not changing the finally likelihood of an offer substantially for a good candidate

You would have to invest a relevant amount of money (€200k) and time (1-2 years), not counting the preparation time for the MBA

MBA is not a compulsory step in MBB if you join now – some people just become senior business analyst/senior associates and move on the ladder in the next role after 1-2 years in such position

If you join consulting now they will likely recognize 1 year of seniority anyway

It’s safer to join as Analyst/Associate than as post MBA; expectations are lower and you could adapt more easily to the new environment

In case you do want to do an MBA for other reasons as well, you could do that anyway and MBB could sponsor your MBA if you are a top performer

I agree with Jacopo that the main challenge would be to get the invitation, but I do not see issues on that given your profile so far that you manage to get a good referral. I would also keep options open and target ATK, RB, OW as well and equivalent consulting firms, as you could transit to MBB after some years there as well without having necessary to go for the MBA path.

LubricantsCo, a very successful Asian premium producer of lubricants in their native region, would like to further increase their revenue and profit. The product range ranges from lubricants in the automotive sector (e.g. motor and gear oil) to industrial applications (e.g. fats, heavy-duty oils).
... Open whole case

You have inherited the “Old Winery” from your grandfather, a winery which has been family owned for five generations and can be dated back to the 16th century.
Half of the eleven hectares are used to grow white grapes, the other half to grow red grapes. They are grown in the conventional way, i.e. ... Open whole case

Tell me of a situation where you had an opinion and no one seemed to agree with you.
What was your goal when you decided to join university / work / clubs / a sports team?
Did you have a goal that you were not able to reach? What did you do?
What do you want to be remembered for and how are you a ... Open whole case

What arouses your interest when you are working / studying / doing another activity (from the CV)?
Tell me of a time where you had no idea what you were doing.
When did you use an uncommon approach to do something?
Have you ever had responsibility for other people?
Tell me of a situation where y ... Open whole case

Tell me about a difficult situation you had to cope with.
Tell me of a task which you didn’t like doing and explain why you performed it nevertheless.
Why do you do things?
What do you like doing most / What is your favorite hobby?
Walk me through a situation where you showed leadership skills.
Open whole case